IPE News

What does it mean to be human? It's an age-old question, made newly urgent by advances in technology, artificial intelligence, and fast-moving social and political change. Funded with a $1 million grant from the Henry Luce Foundation and led by three scholars in the Department of Religious Studies at Indiana University Bloomington, the "Being Human" project will study what makes us human -- from the terrible to the playful, in different places and times, in areas from imaginative arts to empirical sciences. IPE Executive Committee member Lisa Sideris will serve as associate director of the Center for Religion and the Human, and oversee the Religion, Science, and Technology programming.

A project led by an Indiana University School of Education researcher will help families incorporate engineering and "making" activities in their homes -- potentially a step toward promoting interest in STEM and awareness of science and technology careers.

In a consumer confident holiday season, competition for your attention is still fierce, but a growing number of consumers are opting out of Black Friday entirely. Conscious consumers recognize that we are at a unique juncture, where fast consumption of resources and a throwaway society threaten the ability for future generations to sustain themselves. If you reject the messages of Black Friday, how might you approach the gift season differently?

Students and teachers from seven different Indiana high schools attended the Youth Environmental Leadership Summit (YELS) today at SPEA, hosted by the IU Integrated Program in the Environment. Students came prepared to engage in real-world problem solving for environmental challenges in their home communities and were exposed to academic and professional opportunities in the environmental field. After some innovative workshopping and thoughtful student presentations, staff and faculty left encouraged that in these students' hands, the future looks bright.

In response to President Trump’s claims that climate change was a hoax and his promise to cancel US involved in the Paris Climate Agreement, IU geological sciences professor and IPE executive committee member Michael Hamburger founded the Concerned Scientists at IU. Concerned Scientists is a group devoted to strengthening the role of data and research-based decision making in public policy. The group advocates for science in legislative processes, organizes community events to discuss science in policy making and educates IU and Bloomington community members. The student chapter, the Concerned Student Scientists at IU, was created to involved IU students in science advocacy and create a sense of community. Both Concerned Scientists and Concerned Student-Scientists welcome non-scientists as members. Student Adrienne Keller said the groups need members who come from different backgrounds — including policy, law and humanities — in order to effectively advocate for change and strengthen bonds between the groups. “By being interdisciplinary, we can sort of bridge those divides,” Keller said. For more information or to get involved, contact: CSatIUB@gmail.com

The Bloomington Parks and Recreation Department has garnered the 2018 National Gold Medal Award for Excellence in Park and Recreation Management by the American Academy for Park and Recreation AdministrationThe Gold Medal designation is awarded each year in divisions based on population. This is the second time Bloomington has received the award.Managing over 2,275 acres featuring 34 parks, 30 miles of trails, and numerous other recreational resources, Bloomington Parks and Recreation also employs nearly a dozen IU School of Public Health alumni among its ranks.

Indiana University will welcome children and families from across Indiana on Oct. 27 for the fifth annual IU Science Fest.

This free event, hosted by the IU College of Arts and Sciences, will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the Bloomington campus. No registration is required, and groups are encouraged to attend.This year's event will feature over 150 activities in 26 different scientific areas hosted by more than 550 volunteers. Events include annual favorites such as the chemistry magic show, low-temperature physics demonstration, "volcano eruption" and the chance to safely view the sun using the giant telescope in Kirkwood Observatory.

IU Science Fest will also highlight some of the university's latest facilities and technologies, including the opportunity to explore the 3D printing lab at the IU School of Education, discover geology using augmented reality, play with motion-capture technology at The Media School and control race cars with brain waves. Other hands-on events include carving stone tools with an archaeologist and learning to make bread and pickles using fermentation.

Last October, ground was broken on the IU Campus Farm thanks to a $50,000 grant from Indiana University Bloomington's Sustainability Innovation Fund.A year later, the IU campus community is using the farm to provide food at the Indiana Memorial Union and IU residence halls, give back to the local community, and teach students about sustainable agriculture and food systems.Check out this video to learn more about how the IU Campus Farm is using its first harvest to serve the university and the local community.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is considering downgrading an office that makes sure it uses the best science to make decisions. Two former EPA officials in Indiana say it’s another move by the Trump administration to diminish the role of scientists.

A $50,000 grant from Duke Energy will help make IU Bloomington one of the first universities in the U.S. to convert emissions from its heating plant into fertilizer to feed campus vegetation. The technology utilized to make this happen was invented and patented at UK’s Center for Applied Energy Research (CAER). Working with CAER engineers, IU Bloomington has installed a "cyclic flow" photobioreactor system on the roof of its Central Heating Plant. The system will convert carbon emissions from the natural gas boiler into fertilizer via photosynthesis, enhancing sustainability efforts already underway across the campus.

"I look forward to learning from the results in Indiana,” said Wilson, a senior research engineer at CAER. "Many colleges, universities and companies have power plants at their facilities. They also utilize fertilizers as part of their landscaping and beautification programs. If successful, this may provide a new avenue to create those products from a sustainable source, while reducing their carbon footprint."

Wilson credits the vision of IU’s Stephen "Chip" Glaholt for utilizing the project as a way to stimulate applied, multidisciplinary, undergraduate research across campus — essentially as a living laboratory. "It is a very exciting concept," Wilson said. "It creates a win-win-win, highlighting sustainability efforts, engaging students and advancing applied carbon utilization research."